Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

The aquarium has a new face

The Aquarium of San Sebastián has undergone a profound adaptation: the interior of the building has been redesigned and renovated, and the exterior is also urbanized.

San Sebastian and the sea have gone hand in hand throughout

history. Fishermen, storms, beach, tourists, regattas, etc., have all witnessed the marriage between the city and the sea. Like its predecessors, the Aquarium of San Sebastián was also a consequence of the city that lived overlooking the sea and thanks to the sea.

The Aquarium of San Sebastian opened its doors in 1928. The seed, however, had been planted before. in 1908, the Guipúzcoa Oceanographic Society was created, whose work led to the construction of the building, commissioned by the architect Juan Carlos Guerra .1999. until the year, the Aquarium retained

a similar initial appearance; of course, with the work of adaptation and renovation as the years went on. The true metamorphosis came at the end of the century,

when a great deal of reform took place. The most attractive baits that the Aquarium has had in recent years have been the result of this reform: the oceanarium on the one hand and the tunnel that crosses it on the other. During the last three years they have also been working on the Aquarium, which has undergone

a deep adaptation: the aquariums have been evacuated, the interior of the building has been redesigned and renovated, and the exterior is also urbanized.

The works are not yet fully completed, but it is expected that by the first week of December the new facilities will be completed. If things don’t get worse, the refurbished Aquarium will be visible by

then. XABIER LASAGA; AQUARIUM DONOSTIA: Initially the two zirebn routes will increase; the route will reach approximately two kilometers. And we have completely renovated the two floors of the museum, the second and the third, which were quite outdated.

Although some of the shelves and shop windows still look empty, the change that has taken place in the interior of the Aquarium museum is obvious. all the collections collected in 100 years will be exhibited.

They have kept the skeleton of the whale that was once a symbol or the exhibition space of the boats, but there will also be new corners and themes on display, such as the one dedicated to the strokes of San Sebastián and the one they have prepared on the Bidasoa River.

But the Aquarium is mainly fish, and there is more than one innovation, because they have made a new space dedicated to tropical species. they have installed 14 new aquariums and a mangrove with a window of 18 meters in length. In either case, visitors will have the opportunity to see rare

species:AMALIA MARTINEZ DE MURGÍA; AQUARIUM DONOSTIA: We are actually guided by a little beauty of tropicals, the interest that you can have a mangrove, because for example the mangrove is a very little known ecosystem, and a very little received, and we have tried to show you things that are not really easy to see in other aquariums.

The criterion has been mainly to show the beauty of the tropical seas, the interest that a mangrove can have, because, for example, the mangrove is a relatively unknown and unappreciated ecosystem. I'd say we've tried to show you things that are hard to see in

other aquariums. The new aquariums and mangroves occupy an entire floor.

The species, in addition to being spectacular, need special care because their living conditions do not have much to see with the fish that until now were exhibited in San Sebastian. The temperature of the water is significant. These animals are warm water, requiring an average water temperature of about 25°C to survive, while the rest of the animals in the Aquarium live in water between 18 and 20°C.

Just like temperature, light is also important for fish to live properly, and of course the other fluctuations must be taken into account before the fish is brought in when designing.

AMALIA MARTINEZ DE MURGÍA; AQUARIUM DONOSTIA: When you design an aquarium or aquariums, the first thing you want to do is show yourself, what you want to show, and from there you will develop a project with the decorations, with the filming, the quality of the water, and the development of a list of expectations of interests that you can have, and from there the development of the project. When designing an aquarium or a series of aquariums, the first thing you need to ask yourself is what you want to show, what you are going to wear.

From there you develop a project taking into account the decorations, types of filtration, water quality, etc. And with all this, you make a list of species according to your interest.

The skeleton of the whale first, the oceanarium and then the tunnel, the reform of the museum and the space dedicated to tropical species have been the most striking now. Looking ahead, the Aquarium of San Sebastián has an impressive project in hand with other agents: a research centre for tuna fish.

In the United States and Japan there are two large structures for the investigation of tuna, but not in Europe. Some of the details of the project are already detailed. It would be located between the aquarium and the place where the sculpture of Oteiza is located.it would have an aquarium that would hold 4 million liters of water with a window of 72 square meters. To investigate the tunids, there would also be another 8 large reservoirs.

In addition, it is planned to provide laboratories equipped with the latest technology and adequate access systems to facilitate the transport of large species. In total, it is a project with an area of 1,900 square meters, while in monetary terms it has a budget of more than 50 million euros.

The intention is undoubtedly great, as important as the weight of tuna fishing.

XABIER LASAGA; AQUARIUM DONOSTIA: There are several centres in Europe for the research of different fish; we, for example, in recent years, have carried out studies with AZTI on anchovy mackerel, but there is a gap in Europe with regard to tuna. We would like that to be the first centre to investigate where the tuna moves in the sea. The reproduction, the sardas, the survival, the influence of the water, the temperature... all this could not be investigated in the sea, it would be necessary to bring it to some center.

On the day of the inauguration of the new aquarium, it is planned to install the first stone of the project of the research center for tuna.

If implemented, it will take time for the project to become a reality. Meanwhile, the Aquarium will continue its daily visits and works in public: inspections of aquariums and quarantine reservoirs, maintenance of aquariums and reservoirs, cleaning acrylic decorations, feeding fish daily, and cleaning filters. Even at the back of the Aquarium, things won’t change much: growing new species, controlling water quality and salinity, keeping the fish in the quarantine before they are taken to the ocean, controlling phytoplankton and zooplankton growth aids, etc., all to keep the people who go to the Aquarium enjoying

themselves.